The Arbor Stacks
Stories
Two of the oldest shapeshifter tales, told again in the library's own words, and one new story set at the garden gate.
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Retold Tales
The Seal Wife of the Outer Skerry
Retold by Linnea Frostbeck
The old northern selkie tale, retold: a fisherman takes a sealskin from the rocks, a woman of the sea keeps his house, and a child finds what was hidden.
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Retold Tales
The Knight in the Wolf's Coat
Retold by Wren Tarnlow
The medieval tale of the werewolf knight, retold: a baron who becomes a wolf, a wife who steals his clothes, and a king who knows a gentleman in any coat.
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Fiction
The Gate at Dusk
By Bracken Moorlight
An original short story: a tired traveler comes at dusk to a walled garden where the gate is never shut, and is asked a question that can wait until morning.
On retelling
A folktale has no single author and no fixed text. It lives by being told again, a little differently each time, by whoever needs it. The retellings here keep to the bones of the traditional tales, as described on the folklore pages for selkies and for the medieval werewolf. The wording, and the small choices of emphasis, are the library's own.